You are here

Getting around Delft and Holland

Now that you know some good places to go in Delft, you are probably wondering about the best way to get around Delft and the rest of Holland! Read on to figure out how to travel like a local.

Bike

As you have probably heard (and seen), Holland is bike country. There are bikes everywhere and everyone rides them, from young to old. It is estimated there are 3 bikes in Holland for every Dutch person! Because there are so many bikes, Holland’s infrastructure is adapted to them and a bike is the best way to get around in Delft. Distances are usually measured in the time it takes to bike and you can always find a spot to put your bike. Just remember where you put it so you can find it afterwards!More info on where you can get a bike can be found here.

Bus

In case you don’t have a bike or have to take too much stuff with you (the definition of too much varies: sometimes you’ll see some very interesting bike-configurations going down the street) you can use Delft’s bus system.

Holland has a very good public transportation system and the bus system is no exception. There are a lot of buses that go all over town, most of them departing from the central train station.

To ride the bus you can either pay cash or use your ‘OV Chipkaart’, a single card you can use for all transportation. Be aware however that Amsterdam public transportation only accepts the OV chipcard! You can find more info on the OV Chipcard, such as how to apply and what it actually is, here.

Tram

Delft does have several tramlines however they don’t have very many stops in Delft since they are actually part of the The Hague tram network. Because of this it is very convenient to ride the tram into The Hague however, most lines depart from Delft Central train station and connect to the rest of the tram network in The Hague. As with the bus you can pay either with cash or use the OV Chipcard.

Train

By far the best way to conquer the rest of Holland is the train system, run by the NS-company. The Dutch train system is excellent, with trains going everywhere and quite frequently. You’ll often hear people complain about the trains not being on time and such, but this is only due to the fact that we are spoiled and expect the system to be perfect 100% of the time. A lot of people use the train system to commute to work so it can be quite crowded, but it is by far the best and easiest way to get around our beautiful country.

Schedules and timetables

You’re probably thinking ‘great, I know how to get around now but how do I know where to go and when?’ Don’t worry; you won’t have to carry around large complicated paper timetables. There is one central website that does all the planning for you. Simply enter your origin and destination and the app will show you all possible public transport connections, how long it will take you and how much you’ll have to pay. It will also tell you if there is construction going on somewhere along your route and how you can best avoid it.

If you are navigating to and or from an address it will even show you how to walk to the right bus/tram stop. The website also has an app, which you can download in the App Store or on Google Play.

If you just want to look at train times you can go to NS.nl and enter your station of origin and your destination. You will then be able to see all possible connections and the price of your journey. The NS also has an app called ‘reisplanner’ which you can use on the go.

What is ESN Delft?

What makes an international experience unforgettable? Memories, and the people you make those memories with! To help you with both of these things, ESN Delft is here for you.

ESN Delft organizes activities for international students, ranging from weekly drinks and parties to dinners, city trips and Dutch cultural events! Studying abroad is amazing, and our goal is to help make it amazing for you!